**Infection**

Charlie's fingers flew across the keyboard as she sorted through her emails. It was a typical Monday morning, with the usual barrage of messages from coworkers, friends, and spam bots. She clicked on a message from her boss, responded to a query from a colleague, and deleted a few obvious spam messages. As she was about to close her email client, a message caught her eye: "URGENT: Your account has been compromised. Click here to reset your password." Charlie's cursor hovered over the link for a moment, her finger hesitating. Something about the message seemed off, but she was tired and preoccupied, and her attention was divided. With a quick click, she activated the link. At first, nothing seemed to happen. Charlie closed her email client and began to scroll through her social media feed. But as she read through the posts, she started to feel a creeping sense of unease. It was as if her thoughts were foggy, her focus wavering. She tried to shake off the feeling, attributing it to a late night and an early morning. As the day went on, Charlie noticed that her computer was acting strangely. Programs would open and close on their own, and she caught glimpses of strange, garbled text on her screen. She tried to brush it off as a virus or a glitch, but the sensation in her mind persisted. It was as if someone was whispering in her ear, their words just out of reach. Charlie tried to focus on her work, but her attention kept drifting. She felt...different. Her thoughts seemed to be unraveling, like a thread pulled from a sweater. She began to feel a growing sense of disconnection, as if she was observing herself from outside her body. As the sun began to set, Charlie realized that she needed to take a break. She shut down her computer and stood up, stretching her arms over her head. But as she looked around her room, she felt a sense of disorientation. Everything seemed...off. She tried to shake off the feeling, telling herself she was just tired. But as she walked over to her bookshelf, she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror that hung on the wall. For a moment, she thought she saw something...else. A flicker of movement, a shadowy presence that seemed to be watching her. Charlie spun around, but there was no one there. The sensation in her mind grew stronger, like a buzzing in her ears. She felt herself becoming lightheaded, as if she was going to pass out. And then, everything went black.